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Two 1893 Proposals to Introduce Islam in the American South Brent D View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by CSUSB ScholarWorks California State University, San Bernardino CSUSB ScholarWorks Library Faculty Publications John M. Pfau Library 12-2006 Minarets in Dixie: Two 1893 Proposals to Introduce Islam in the American South Brent D. Singleton California State University, San Bernardino, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: http://scholarworks.lib.csusb.edu/library-publications Part of the History of Religion Commons, Islamic World and Near East History Commons, and the United States History Commons Recommended Citation Singleton, Brent D., "Minarets in Dixie: Two 1893 Proposals to Introduce Islam in the American South" (2006). Library Faculty Publications. Paper 12. http://scholarworks.lib.csusb.edu/library-publications/12 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the John M. Pfau Library at CSUSB ScholarWorks. It has been accepted for inclusion in Library Faculty Publications by an authorized administrator of CSUSB ScholarWorks. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Minarets in Dixie: Proposals to Introduce Islam in the American South ____________________________________ BRENT D. SINGLETON Journal of Muslim Minority Affairs, Vol. 26, No. 3, December 2006, pp. 433-444. DOI: 10.1080/13602000601141448 Abstract In May 1893, Mohammed Alexander Russell Webb, an American convert to Islam, communicated with landowners in Florida, Georgia, and Alabama to purchase property in order to establish colonies of Muslim Indian immigrants. A month earlier, Julius Chambers, a New York newspaper editor, put forth a call to convert the masses of African Americans in the South to Islam. This essay describes the two Islamization schemes, their interrelation, and their ultimate demise. Drawing mainly from Southern newspapers, the resultant press reaction both in support of and in opposition to Webb’s immigration plan is also presented. The essay is a starting point for further investigation into early American Muslim history. Introduction During the last days of May 1893, the Southern press was focused on the journey of exhumed Confederate President Jefferson Davis’ funeral train from New Orleans to his final resting place in Richmond, Virginia. A week later, newspapers began to cover the opening of the Lizzie Borden murder trial as well as the death of Edwin Booth, famed actor and brother of John Wilkes Booth. Among the various accounts of these and other news events appeared several curious articles concerning Mohammed Alexander Russell Webb, an American Muslim, and his proposed scheme to establish large colonies of Indian Muslims in the South. The audacious plan made local and national headlines, but extraordinarily it was not the first Islamization scheme to come to light that year. The preceding month Julius Chambers, a Northern newspaper editor, put forth a call to “…advance the condition…” of the masses of African American Southerners through conversion to Islam. Ultimately, neither scheme came to fruition, but the momentary excitement they brought about offers an interesting study of these forgotten episodes in Southern history. Webb’s Scheme Mohammed Alexander Russell Webb was a native New Yorker, who by 1877 had made his way to St. Louis, Missouri, where he established himself as reporter for several papers and later as assistant city editor for the St. Louis Republic.1 During the early 1880s Webb delved into the study of Asian religious systems, leading him to join the Pioneer Theosophical Society in St. Louis. Webb quickly became absorbed in his studies spending up to six hours per day engaged in reading and researching the finer points of Buddhism and other religions. In 1886, he came across an advertisement by Mirza Ghulam Ahmad of Qadian, India, founder of the Ahmadiyya Movement, challenging anyone to find fault with even a single one of his 300 arguments in favor of the authenticity of the Qur’an and Muhammad’s prophetic mission. Until this time Webb had given little attention to Islam, but now he was intrigued and wanted to learn more and thus started a correspondence with Ahmad. A year later, Webb decided that to truly study Islam and the other Eastern religions he needed to travel to Asia and be among the believers of those faiths. Through the assistance of friends and associates, President Cleveland’s administration appointed Webb to the post of United States Consul for the Philippine Islands. He had intended being located in Singapore or India, but there were no openings at that time. When offered the post in Manila he decided to accept, with the idea of transferring to a more favorable location when a position was available. After several years in Manila engaged in reading tracts written by Muslims and non-Muslims alike, Webb had increased his knowledge but still was not in contact with other Muslims. Around 1891 his prospects brightened when he came in contact with a Parsee trader from Bombay. Although not a Muslim himself, the gentleman agreed to take a letter of introduction from Webb to Bombay businessman and politician, Budruddin Abdulla Kur. Over the next few months, the two men corresponded about Islamic doctrine and other Muslim religious matters, and Kur sent further Islamic readings and reference sources for Webb’s study. It is unclear exactly when Webb converted to Islam, but there is enough evidence to assume that by this time he was a Muslim and Kur was excited about the prospects of encountering a well-positioned American believer. With Webb’s permission Kur had several of their letters reproduced in prominent Bombay newspapers. The letters caused great excitement among the Indian Muslims and quickly caught the eye of Hajee Abdulla Arab, a trader and philanthropist, who was struck with the idea of sending an Islamic mission to the United States. Arab and other Indian Muslims had been captivated by the success of the Moslem Institute in Liverpool, England. Under the direction of Abdullah William Quilliam, a British covert to Islam, the Institute had attracted over 200 converts in a short period of time. The Indians saw the Moslem Institute as a model Islamic mission to the West. Hajee Abdulla Arab traveled to Manila in the spring of 1892 and upon being convinced of Webb’s sincerity toward Islam, inquired about his interest in establishing a mission to America. Webb immediately agreed to the proposition and signed a three-year contract, with an immediate two-year extension, to run what was coined the American Islamic Propaganda. In September of 1892, Webb resigned his consulship to begin his mission. As part of the contract Webb had freely agreed that his return to America would include a tour of India and stops in Egypt, Turkey, and Liverpool, England. His circuitous journey through India brought him to all of the country’s major cities where he encountered potential subscribers to his mission and gave lectures on Islam. Webb met many of the wealthy and powerful Muslims in India at that time, including scholars and politicians such as Moulvi Cheragh Ali, Khuda Buksh, Badruddin Tyabji, Khan Bahadur Kazi Shahabudin, and Nawab Mohsin-ul- Mulk, as well as several princes and other high officials within the colonial government and government of the Nizam of Hyderabad. The journey through India lasted roughly two-and-a- half months not including several weeks spent in Singapore and Rangoon on the voyage from Manila. An additional month-and-a-half were spent visiting the Middle East and England. After five-and-a-half months of travel, Webb arrived in New York City on 16 February 1893. News of Webb’s conversion had been reported in the papers since he announced his resignation, and upon his arrival he was an instant media sensation. He initially gave several interviews to newspapers and engaged in a handful of lectures and receptions, but shortly thereafter Webb withdrew from the public eye so that he could concentrate on building the infrastructure of his propaganda mission. Within the first three months he was able to publish his book, Islam in America, and establish the mission’s 1 newspaper, The Moslem World, but much to his chagrin, news was leaked to the press that he had embarked on a colonization scheme involving large numbers of Indian Muslims immigrating to America. He was disappointed on two counts, the news was a major distraction from his efforts in building the Propaganda’s institutions and secondly he had hoped that the land required for the proposed colonies would have been purchased prior to any announcement of their formation. Articles concerning Webb’s scheme began appearing on 29 May 1893, after the story was picked up by the Associated Press and telegraphed nationally. In response to the news leak Webb tried to be as forthcoming as possible with regard to the immigration scheme, although many specific details were never revealed to the public. According to Webb, Indian Muslims from the higher classes had long been admirers of the United States and were familiar with the American political structure and right of religious freedom.2 They had considered immigrating for a number of years but failed to do so because of the lack of established American Islamic cultural and religious intsitutions. The absence of immigration of any kind from India is borne out by the total population of foreign-born Indians in the United States during the late nineteenth century. In 1890 there were 2,143 individuals listed as having been born in India and this number decreased to 2,031 by 1900. It must be kept in mind that these numbers were irrespective of race and solely based on country of birth, which would have included Englishmen born in India.3 The religious background of each of these immigrants is not known, but many Parsee merchants were in America at the time and in the waning years of the nineteenth century Sikhs came to the West Coast of America through Canada.4 During Webb’s travels many of his Indian hosts had approached him concerning a desire among the brethren to reconsider immigration now that Webb was laying the groundwork for Islam in America.
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